Photo Cheat Sheet

BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY Bird photography is challenging on many levels. As a beginning bird photographer, it’s a good idea to practice the fundamentals of exposure and focusing on a fast moving object.

PHOTZY.COM

Perfect to print A5 size 14cm x 21cm / 5.83” x 8.27”

CHOOSE THE RIGHT SHOOTING MODE

M MANUAL MODE

A /AV APERTURE PRIORITY MODE Start with an of ISO 200/400 and the widest aperture your lens has. This will allow a faster shutter speed to freeze themotion.

S /TV SHUTTER PRIORITY MODE Set the ISO to 100 and a slower shutter speed: start with 1/30” to 1/125”. Adjust to a faster shutter speed- depending on the level of blur that you want.

ISO 200 and f/11 is a good place to start. Manual mode works best (if you are familiar with it), in situations where the birds are semi-still, for example, resting on a branch.

KEEP THE RIGHT FOCUS POINT

MIND THE BACKGROUND - CHECK THE HISTOGRAM FOLIAGE BACKGROUND If your camera allows it, select the central focus point, and the focus trackingmode. Keep the shutter release button half press, as you follow themotion of the bird. Keep the focus on the same spot, and shoot when you like the composition or the background.

If the background foliage is in the sunlight the histogramshould peak toward themiddle. If the foliage is in shadows- the peak will be off-center to the left. If not, move the exposure compensation one stop negative. Clear blue skies tend to show a centered peak in the histogram. If the sky is cloudy, the peak will slide off-center to the right. If not, up one stop of positive exposure compensation.

SKY BACKGROUND

SPECIAL TECHNIQUES

Made with FlippingBook HTML5